REPORT: Zamboanga-based League to Conduct Six-Digit CS Tournament

Sources have stated that the Zamboanga eSports League (ZeSL), an esports tourney focusing on Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), is set to conduct a six-figure tournament for Mindanaoan teams later this year.

Further research has shown that ZeSL has the potential capability to run a large-scale LAN tournament due to its several partnerships with leading internet cafes and well-funded stakeholders. The Zamboanga-based league runs two exclusive 128-bit servers for its tournaments and streams its matches on Facebook. In addition, it is considered to be the leading CS:GO tournament organizer in the Zamboanga Peninsula region.

Available information revealed that ZeSL already conducted three seasons, with the latest iteration attracting 14 teams from Western Mindanao.

The major tournament is originally slated to be set for June, though the same sources suggest that the organizers are still making arrangements at the moment.

If the said tournament by ZeSL turns out to be true, then this will mark a huge shift in the balance of CS:GO tournaments in the country as many organizers from Visayas and Mindanao were reported to be interested in conducting CS leagues in their respective regions. Last year, the sole major tournament series was the Mineski Pro Gaming League (MPGL). The said league was held primarily in Luzon, though there were online qualifiers for non-Luzon teams.

For 2017, WASD Philippines just concluded the Tarlac eSports League (TeSL) on April 28, which saw Luzon powerhouse Mineski win the inaugural title over Visayan side Gaon Gaming, 16-6, on Train. TeSL had a total of 52 teams from all over the country, with eight making it to the LAN finals. Cyberia Gaming Hub (CGH) from Davao reached the semi-finals of the TeSL. This does not include smaller tournaments conducted by WASD, Mineski and other operators.

The organizers were not immediately available for comment as of press time.

Earl Carlo "dreamslayer28" Guevarra is the head editor for Play on WASD. Contributed for many sites, including eSports Manila and GAMURS.